


Living in a Lunar Spell

by Impala_Chick



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dark, Dark Theo Raeken, Full Moon, Full Shift Werewolves, Halloween, Horror, M/M, Resurrection, Survival Horror
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2020-12-16 17:36:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21040103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Impala_Chick/pseuds/Impala_Chick
Summary: Once a year when the veil is thinnest, Liam is presented with an opportunity. He takes it even though he probably shouldn't.





	1. Lost in the Woods

**Author's Note:**

> For the House Theo Halloween bingo square _Lost in the Woods_.

A twig snaps somewhere behind Liam and he tenses, waiting. He squints his eyes, more out of habit than necessity, and peers between the thick tree trunks that block his path. He looks over his shoulder and tries to catch the scent of whatever or whoever seems to be following him, but there’s nothing unusual about the damp smell of earth that surrounds him. He shakes his head, annoyed that his werewolf senses aren’t providing him any sort of advantage over whatever it is that has been lurking in the dark.

A slow-moving mist is threading its way between the trees and Liam pushes through it as he makes his way forward. He looks down and watches the way the damp tendrils curl around his legs. He moves slowly, his skin prickling from the sensation that someone is watching him. Liam has already turned around twice, and yet he doesn’t feel any closer to finding the edge of the preserve. He only makes it a few more feet before he groans in frustration and stops in his tracks. He’s sick of waiting.

“Come and get me, then!” He yells into the blackness, his hands curled into fists at his sides. 

That’s when he hears it. 

An answering roar.

It’s so loud that it seems to blanket the entire forest. Liam can’t tell where exactly it came from, but it’s so distinct that Liam knows exactly who made the sound.

So he starts to run.

Liam feels his blood pounding in his ears as he weaves through trees. Wind whips past him and seems to drag on his arms. He can’t get his legs to move fast enough as he plunges deeper into the woods. Branches strike his cheek and tear his skin but he doesn’t stop. He can hear something crashing through the brush somewhere behind him, gaining on him. All he can smell is the overwhelming scent of primal fear, his own fear. It’s so strong he nearly chokes from it, but he knows that if he stops, if he slows for even a second, he’ll be caught. 

If he’s caught, the hunt will end. And Liam can’t let that happen.

He pushes himself forward faster, _faster_.

His eyes prickle with tears from the harsh way the wind is hitting his face, but Liam barely registers the pain. Liam’s whole body is in survival mode and nothing else matters except luring _him_ deeper into the woods.

The hunt is the only way to keep the wolf from pillaging Beacon Hills, tearing flesh from bones and devouring civilians with gnashing teeth.

The shift is completely uncontrollable for him now that the moon is full. The wolf takes over his mind and body, transforming him into something that is almost unrecognizable. Definitely not human. Liam knows this, because this isn’t the first time Liam’s brought him back from hell.

A feral howl pierces through the forest and Liam instinctively skids to a stop and cocks his head towards the sound. 

He is close. Too close. 

Liam sniffs the air, but can’t smell the rubber of the tires or the lingering exhaust from his car. They are too deep into the forest for Liam to backtrack now. And if Liam howls, there is no chance anyone else will hear him. No one even knows he came out to the preserve. Liam feels his legs shaking, and he's not sure how much longer he can last. 

He’d hoped this year would be different, but he’s out of time. He’s only got one option now. He reaches around his waist and with a crack louder than a whip, snaps together Kira’s sword.

He turns around, holds the sword high above his head, and waits. He never intended for it to end this way. But the wolf is, after all, Liam’s responsibility. 

The wolf breaks through the trees with a crash and slides to a stop, his blue eyes narrowed at Liam. The wolf's upper lip quivers as a low growl bubbles up from his throat, and Liam can see all of his sharp teeth glinting in the moonlight.

“Theo,” Liam breathes. “I’m sorry.”

Tears stream down Liam's cheeks as he plunges the sword into the soft, damp earth. He watches it fissure with a sickening crunching sound. Theo howls in agony, and Liam's bones ache from the sound, but that doesn't matter now. Liam falls to his knees as Theo is swallowed whole. 


	2. Resurrection

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the House Theo Halloween Bingo square _resurrection_.

This time, it will be different.

Sweat is beading along his brow but he barely notices. He’s grasping Kira’s sword between his clammy, utterly human palms. He glances up at the dark sky; the full moon is glowing in unusual orange and red hues that give the preserve a weird red sheen. He returns his focus to the ground just in front of his feet, and watches the line of faint red light as it advances towards him. He barely breathes, barely blinks, because he knows he has a very small window of time to bring Theo back. He’s too tense, his body one rigid line as he waits. 

He inhales deeply, his ears straining to catch any unusual movement. But his hearing is utterly human too. His heartbeat is pounding in his ears, drowning out everything else.

The lunar eclipse is keeping Liam from shifting. 

In theory, it will keep Theo from shifting too.

But mortal rules have never applied to Theo, not after he’d been to hell. Every time Liam has brought him back, he’s risen as a fully shifted wolf, blinded by a vicious and primal blood-lust that is impossible to overcome. He’d had no choice but to pretend to be the prey that Theo so desperately sought. Now he’s bringing Theo back on the hunch that the lunar eclipse will affect him somehow, maybe slow him down at least.

Equipped with only an average human sense of sight, Liam will most definitely get lost amidst the thick trees of the preserve. He won’t have any warning about where Theo is because he won’t be able to smell him or track him. And worst of all, Theo will most definitely be able to outrun him. 

The moonlight touches the toe of Liam’s boot and Liam takes a deep breath. It’s now or never.

Liam thrusts the sword into the ground and steps back as the earth cracks open along a jagged blue line. 

He sees the tips of Theo’s ears first. He emerges in his wolf form, teeth clacking together and lips pulled back in a snarl. He jumps out of hell to stand right in front of Liam, his eyes wild and unrecognizable. Liam stands his ground even though it makes the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He can’t let Theo see his fear. Liam squares his shoulders and stares at Theo with his teeth bared, hopefully looking more intimidating than he feels. He feels naked and exposed without his claws or fangs.

Theo lifts one paw and then the other. He looks down at himself with his ears flat against his head. As orange light washes over him, his joints start to pop and flex in strange ways. He whimpers and then the shift becomes more violent. He shakes as his whole body seems to turn in on itself. Liam closes his eyes for a moment, unable to watch how much the transformation obviously hurts Theo. He has no idea how long it’s been since Theo was human, and he’s struck with the thought that maybe Theo won’t remember who he is.

When Liam opens his eyes, Theo is standing before him completely naked. He is running his hands over his own torso with a wide-eyed look on his face, like he’s surprised by his own skin. His brown hair is matted to his head, but Liam can’t tell if that’s because of blood or sweat. He’s got dirt and dried blood all over his thighs and arms. There are angry red welts on his shoulders and Liam cringes at the sight of them. It’s a stark reminder that Liam has no idea how terrible hell must of been. It could have been terrible enough to make Theo forget Liam. 

Liam holds his breath with his heart pounding in his chest.

Theo finally looks up at him, and his face is thoughtful for a moment. He cocks his head like he does when he’s in wolf form, and Liam lets himself smile at the gesture. Even if Theo doesn’t recognize him, at least his plan worked.

“Theo?” Liam asks gently. He doesn’t move, worried that Theo will run from him. 

But then Theo crosses his arms over his chest and cocks his hip. That’s when Liam can tell that the man before him is undoubtedly Theo, even before he opens his mouth.

“Did you do all this just to see me naked?” Theo smirks. His voice is gravelly and rough, and it sounds strange to Liam's ears. But Theo doesn’t seem to notice the difference.

Liam huffs a laugh and rolls his eyes. His body shivers as the tension drains from his shoulders. He’s so relieved that he feels his eyes welling up with tears.

“I can’t believe it,” Liam says, almost to himself. 

Theo taps his foot against the ground a few times and then unfolds his arms. He bites his lip and avoids Liam’s gaze. Liam isn’t sure if he’s uncomfortable because of what Liam said, or if it feels too strange not to be the wolf anymore.

“You can stop looking at me like that,” Theo says harshly. He takes a hesitant step towards Liam, just a little shaky on his human legs. 

“Like what? Like you just came back from the dead?” Liam grouses with a roll of his eyes.

Theo throws his head back and laughs before he fixes Liam with a wicked smirk. 

“I’d apologize for all the…” Theo trails off and waves his hand in the general direction of Beacon Hills. “Carnage. But in hell, I'm just a wolf. And my master is a demon. He says I... owe him certain things.” Theo's voice goes soft at the end, like he's a bit embarrassed about the whole situation. Liam finds this telling. Theo hasn't completely lost his humanity, clearly.

So Liam shakes his head and holds up his hand to cut Theo off. He is well-acquainted with all of the horrible things Theo has done as a wolf of hell. And he’s had plenty of time to come to terms with Theo’s darkest parts.

“We only have about an hour,” Liam says as he shakes his head. Liam doesn’t want to waste their time together talking about things that neither of them can change.

“You shouldn’t keep bringing me back.” His face looks neutral but his voice sounds deadly serious. Theo takes another step forward, this one much more confident than the last.

Liam is tired of waiting. It’s too much pressure to constantly guard against every possible danger. To be the gatekeeper to hell, the protector of Beacon Hills, the pack alpha, the predator, the _prey_. Tonight he wants to be selfish.

He launches himself into Theo’s arms and tangles his fingers in Theo’s hair. He presses his nose to Theo’s neck as Theo pulls him closer. Liam inhales the smell of dried blood and wet earth that linger on Theo, but the smells just remind Liam that this is _real_. Theo is really back with him, if only for a short while.

“Thanks,” Theo says, so quiet Liam nearly misses it.

Liam pulls back to look at Theo, mock aghast. “Wow, hell really has changed you.”

“You have no idea,” Theo says, deadpan. Liam tenses, afraid that he’s gone too far with his joke. But then Theo slaps him on the ass and darts into the tree line.

“You can’t send me back without catching me first!” Theo calls over his shoulder as he runs.

Liam isn’t sure if Theo is joking or actually trying to get away.

Either way, Liam enjoys the chase.


End file.
